TRC told to pay costs
Developer wins in planning court case
THE Toowoomba Regional Council has been ordered to pay the legal costs of a developer after a court ruling in the planning and environment court.
Toowoomba CBD furniture store owner J Rowe and Sons, informally known as Rowes, won a favourable decision in court on Friday after it appealed a $65,000 infrastructure charges bill in July.
The charges related to Rowes’ $10 million site redevelopment on various parcels of land on Russell and Keefe Sts.
Judge Michael Rackemann ruled for the appeal to be allowed, ordering the council pay $8000 towards the applicant’s legal fees.
The new infrastructure agreement, attached to the order, found that Rowes actually had a $35,000 credit for land use and stormwater infrastructure with the council.
Documents submitted by the applicant’s lawyer Andrew Davis, available online, revealed the appellant had formally offered to settle the case four times between July and September.
In a letter to Mr Davis on December 4, the council’s solicitor Brent Lillywhite of Corrs Chambers Westgarth wrote that the council’s original infrastructure charges notice “incorrectly levied charges in circumstances where ultimately a nil charge was applicable”.
The appeal was filed after the council calculated charges based on an increase of gross floor area for each individual lot, rather than the net impact of the 12 lots as a set, or premises.
Rowes revealed plans to rejuvenate its site in the CBD in October 2018, creating new office space and small business tenancies at the expense of its famous showroom.